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Politics & Security

Former Israeli army chief of staff Gadi Eizenkot speaks during the launch of the Yashar party's election campaign in Hod Aharon, in central Israel, on June 30, 2026.

New Israeli election poll puts Eisenkot ahead of Netanyahu: What to know

Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party has now bypassed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud in the polls, cementing his status as Netanyahu’s main opponent.

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey Alparslan Bayraktar speaks during the launch of an offshore energy exploration at the port in Mogadishu on April 10, 2026.

Turkey brokers intra-Somalia talks as federal rifts test Ankara’s influence

Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland and Jubaland states reportedly declined to join the talks, as Ankara is ramping up efforts to shore up support for Somalia’s federal institutions.

Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

Why US strikes on Iran rail bridge signal shift in Hormuz conflict

A US missile strike on the railway bridge linking Iran to Central and East Asia suggests the White House is once again flirting with politically coercive tactics after the June agreement failed to halt Iran's attacks on Hormuz shipping.

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'Obliterated entire families': Amnesty calls for investigating Israeli strikes in Lebanon as war crimes

FADEL itani / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As Trump declares deal 'over,' IRGC takes lead in shaping Iran's response

Iranian NOPO special police officers stand guard in front of a large portrait of Iran's late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at Valiasr square on July 3, 2026, in Tehran, Iran.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Trump 'undecided' on Turkey's F-35s as Congress seeks answers on S-400

Getty Images

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

An employee of the Qatar-based news network and TV channel Al Jazeera is seen at the channel's Jerusalem office on July 31, 2017.

Israel’s Netanyahu vows to shut Al Jazeera after Knesset law

The prime minister's pledge drew statements of concern and condemnation from the White House and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Palestinian children sit on a hill next to tents housing the displaced in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 30, 2024 amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory between Israel and the militant group Hamas.

US, Israel hold virtual talks over threatened Rafah invasion

The virtual meeting between US and Israeli officials took place a week after the American abstention from a United Nations cease-fire resolution ratcheted up tensions between the two countries.

Ultra Orthodox Jewish youths block a road in Bnei Brak as they protest against their conscription into the Israeli armed forces, on April 1, 2024.

Analysis

Row in Israel over ultra-Orthodox draft threatens Netanyahu’s government

Ultra-Orthodox leaders are threatening to topple the government should the IDF start recruiting yeshiva students to serve in the army.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

The site of the strike in Damascus.

Breaking | Last Updated: April 1, 2024, 4:02 pm

Commander in Iran’s IRGC killed in suspected Israeli strike in Damascus

Israel is widely suspected of striking Iranian military targets throughout Syria.

Opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) supporters celebrate outside the main municipality building following municipal elections across Turkey, in Istanbul on March 31, 2024. Turkey's main opposition party on March 31 claimed victory in Istanbul and Ankara, with its rising political star emerging from local elections as a serious challenger to veteran President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan, addressing supporters at his party's headquarters in Ankara, acknowledged a "turning point" for his party and pro

Analysis

Turkey's Erdogan handed historic setback in local elections

For the first time since its inception in 2001, the ruling party’s nationwide vote share fell below that of the main opposition, dealing a blow to the Turkish president’s post-election plans, analysts believe.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

The last French soldiers board a French military plane to leave Niger for good, at the French base which was handed over to the Nigerien army, in Niamey on December 22, 2023. The last French troops withdrew from Niger on December 22, 2023, marking an end to more than a decade of French anti-jihadist operations in west Africa's Sahel region, AFP saw and Niger's military announced. The French exit from Niger leaves hundreds of US military personnel, and a number of Italian and German troops, remaining in the

What Niger-US rupture says about Russia and West's shaky future in Sahel

Niger’s decision to suspend military cooperation with the United States follows rising anti-Western sentiment in the region.

Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour speaks.

Interview

Palestine to bid for full UN membership this month, says ambassador

Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour spoke to Al-Monitor about Arab solidarity on Gaza, Palestine’s efforts to become a full member of the UN, reconciliation with Hamas and alleged sexual crimes on both sides of the conflict.

Riyad Mansour

Riyad Mansour

Palestine Ambassador to the UN

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

From PKK to corridor project: Ambitious agenda awaits Turkey’s Erdogan in Iraq

Security cooperation and transport corridor plans are expected to top the agenda of the Turkish president’s visit to Iraq in April, the first of its kind since 2011.

A miner from Gold Fields South Africa company walks near the exit of the South Deep gold mine in Westonaria, Gauteng, on Oct. 12, 2022.

Saudi Arabia, UAE amp up Africa investments amid growing competition

Africa is seeing a major uptick in investments from the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which presents the possibility of 'greater returns' for the Gulf states.

A view shows the burnt-out Crocus City Hall concert venue in Krasnogorsk, outside Moscow, on March 26, 2024.

From Russia to Iran and Turkey: Understanding rise, narrative of ISIS-K

The jihadi group has been raising its profile since the beginning of 2024 through suicide attacks in southern Iran in January and the armed attack on an Istanbul Roman Catholic church last month.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to supporters through inside a modified truck with a side bulletproof glass during a campaign event on Oct. 29, 2022 in Bnei Brak, Israel.

Analysis

Inside Israel, Netanyahu’s poll numbers improving despite US rupture

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu keeps using his well-used method of convincing his right-wing base that he is the only one able to stand up against American pressure.

Mazal Mualem

By Mazal Mualem

In Tel Aviv, reporting on politics

Ahead of March 31 municipal elections, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters during a campaign rally in Istanbul, March 22, 2024.

Will Erdogan’s fate be decided at Turkey's local polls?

An opposition victory in March 31 municipal elections, including in Istanbul, could shake up Turkey's political scene in unpredictable ways, perhaps even descent into full-blown authoritarianism.